


Firefly

by anri



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-05-22
Updated: 2016-12-26
Packaged: 2018-06-09 23:52:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 14,865
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6929455
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/anri/pseuds/anri
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Before going to university, Kuroo's able to spend a week or two with Tsukishima and his family.<br/>But nothing seems to go right for the couple at all.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> It's the middle of exams but I have inspiration and I am going to die and my wrist is so painful I have RSI or something.  
> I'm like halfway finished with exams next week tho. Bless!!!  
> KuroTsukki is my guilty pleasure  
> Follow me on [Tumblr](http://anri-kun.tumblr.com/)

Tsukishima sat by the window, foot tapping anxiously. His phone was clamped in his hand tightly, waiting for any news. Kuroo was a vague texter. "Soon." Was all he said. What did that mean? Was he on the train, still? _Off_ the train? Walking? Kei hoped he wasn't walking. It took ages to walk from the station, and he needed to see Kuroo soon.

And then he saw a car pull up, and someone emerged from the back of it, pulling his suitcase behind him.

He didn't want to admit that he shrieked, nor that he fell out of the chair in a spasm of excitement, but he has to admit it. Because Akiteru was there to witness the sudden ungraceful action. And Akiteru would never let him live that one down. "Mum! I think Kuroo's here!" he yelled as his younger brother sprinted to the front door, nearly slipping on the floor.

He flung open the door, pulling Kuroo close to him. The cabdriver hadn't even driven off yet, Kuroo dropped his suitcase in alarm, frozen for a moment. Kei breathed in heavily, smelling Kuroo in the first time in months. He sighed, pulling him close. He didn't _care_ that he was supposed to be cold and distant. He had a boyfriend, didn't he? He was allowed to be like this sometimes. "Jesus, Tsukki," Kuroo breathed, rubbing his back.

"Shut the fuck up, Kuroo," he whispered. He couldn't manage anything more than that - he was worried his voice might crack.

"I love you too, sweetheart," the older boy mumbled back, kissing Tsukishima on his temple. They clung together for a long time, not wanting to move. They hadn't seen each other for so long. They pulled apart a bit, and suddenly now that Tsukishima wasn't crouching anymore, he was looking down on Kuroo. "Have you gotten taller again, you beanstalk?" Tetsurou muttered, and Tsukishima shrugged,

"Maybe you're shrinking."

Kuroo smirked, brushing his hand over Kei's face for a moment, before leaning up to kiss him. It was only for a moment, for a small greeting. Kei's family was there, they couldn't do anything more. But he wanted more. They hugged again, and then eventually pulled apart. Tsukishima held the door open as Kuroo stepped into the house.

 

"You must be Kuroo Tetsurou, Kei's boyfriend?"

His mother was tall - which was expected, and blonde as well, her hair was tied back tightly in a braid. Akiteru was standing in the doorframe, watching him carefully. Kuroo recognised him vaguely from some of Tsukishima's snapchats. "Yup," he said, smiling. Kei's mum smiled back. She had a nice smile. Akiteru had a nice smile too. Kei probably had that smile - if his facial muscles were even still capable of that. "Well we're very excited to have you stay with us, Akiteru can show you where to put your stuff, and you can settle in, I'm sure Kei can tell you everything you need to know. Dinner will be later."

Kuroo followed Akiteru up the stairs, the older boy eyeing him suspiciously. "You're staying in my room, because...you know. You can't stay in Kei's room. I hope that's okay."

"Yeah, that's fine," Kuroo had been expecting that. He'd hoped somewhere at the back of his mind that maybe they could stay in the same room, but he wasn't expecting the Tsukishimas to be idiots. They had produced that disturbing intelligence that Kei has, after all.

They put his stuff down, and Kei quickly grabbed his hand, pulling him out of his older brother's room. "Where're you going?" Akiteru called.

"My room."

"I think that's exactly why he's staying in my room."

"Shut up, dinner's in like twenty minutes, I just want time with him." And that seemed to be the end of the discussion. Akiteru didn't fight it.

Kuroo followed Kei has he pulled him along. His room was neat, orderly, just what Kuroo had expected from him. They shut the door behind them, and turned to face each other. Kuroo looked at him, holding his hand gently. "I missed you," he murmured. Tsukishima grabbed his other hand, leaning closer.

"You too."

"Wow, actually admitting it, are you?"

"Shut up, asshole." Tsukishima nestled closer to his shoulder.

"I'm here for two weeks,"

"Two weeks, and then I don't see you again for months."

"It's not that bad, we've coped before."

"Yeah, but this time you're in uni. It feels further."

"Yeah but now we got time, so let's make the most of it."

 

Kuroo woke up early the next morning, before Akiteru. He got up slowly, still unfamiliar with the house. He thought it would be weird (and suspicious) if he went to go to Kei's room, and so he went downstairs. Their mother was still up, and she looked at him, things suddenly awkward. "Hello there," he said.

"Morning. Would you like coffee?"

"I'm not really a caffeine person."

"Oh. Different from Kei then. Do you want juice? It's in the fridge,"

He moved forward as she pulled out a glass.

"So, I gather you two met at a volleyball training camp?"

"Uh, yes, yes we did."

"And you're a third year in high school?"

"Well, I'm heading to university this year but,"

"What are you planning on doing?"

"I was thinking about the police."

She nodded, humming to herself. "What's Kei like in training?"

"Oh you know, he's tall. That's good,"

"Yeah, you're all tall," he breathed. It's not like he was jealous. Because he totally wasn't, but, "Is Kei's dad tall as well?"

Mrs Tsukishima froze, and Kuroo got the idea instantly that he shouldn't have mentioned that. "He...he is," she said stiffly.

"Oh," Tetsurou said quietly. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to-"

"No, no, it's fine," she smiled.

"Did he...is he not in the picture anymore?"

"He moved to Canada, has a new wife now. Has Kei not told you about his half-sisters?"

"No...?"

"Well, his father is still definite about the boys visiting on holidays."

Kuroo nodded slowly, sipping his juice. Kei's mum cleared her throat, "You're up early, that might be an issue. Kei doesn't really...wake up. He tends to be, nearly nocturnal over the holidays, I'm afraid."

"I'm sure I can drag him out of bed."

She bit her lip, shaking her head, "Good luck with that."

 

It turns out it was nearly impossible to wake Kei up. Tetsurou leaned over his bed, shaking his shoulders. "Tsukki," he said,

The boy moaned, brushing a hand over his face. He was cute without his glasses. He looked innocent without that disapproving, condescending smirk. "C'mon, babe," he mumbled, sitting on the bed, shaking his shoulders again. "Fuck off," Kei hissed, rolling over.

"Nu-uh, c'mon honey," Kuroo reached over, shaking him again, pulling him up.

Kei opened his eyes, blinking sleepily. "Why are you doing this to me?" he mumbled.

"Because I want to spend time with you."

"Just get in the bed next to me."

"Your brother and mum are gunna freak out,"

"Ugh, I don't even care, it's your fault if you try to jump me, they should be fine with just cuddling."

 

And so, by the time Akiteru woke up, he found that the camp bed next to him was empty. He stood up, shuffling over to the door, and found his mum leaning on the doorframe for Kei's room. "What is it?"

"Him and his boyfriend are cuddling,"

"Is Kuroo supposed to be in there?"

"He's not doing anything." Akiteru looked over and saw his younger brother curled up in bed. Kuroo was nestled close to him, cradling him close to his body. It was kind of sweet, in a way.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Im so unwell rn Im sorry  
> The song on Kuroo's phone is [Roll Deep](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ib_1ATfr8wM) by Hyuna

Tsukishima eventually crawled out of bed midday, although not fully conscious. He dressed slowly, and sat for another twenty minutes blankly sipping coffee. Kuroo watched him from the other side of the table, sighing to himself. "It's like one O'clock in the afternoon, how are you still so sleepy?"

Instead of coming up with a snarky retort, Tsukishima just blinked slowly at him. It was adorable. Kuroo felt his heart melt a little bit. He put his mug down, slowly watching it. "Are you done?" Kuroo asked, and after a moment, Kei nodded. God, this time delay was adorable. How could a child this irritating usually be so sweet now? Kuroo got out of his chair, leaning over him, kissing him on the lips. Kei sat still, and after a moment reached a hand up to touch Kuroo's face. He tasted like coffee and it was surprisingly sweet, which Kuroo loved. He leaned back, after a moment, realising they were in the kitchen, in full view of the rest of the family. Tetsurou saw Akiteru looking at them out of the corner of his eye, and Mrs Tsukishima wilfully turned the other way to ignore it. Kei seemed to have woken up a bit, and looked down, his cheeks flushed. "We're gunna go out now," he said, standing up from the table. His mother nodded, watching the two of them as they went back into Kei's room.

"Are you stupid or what?" he hissed at Kuroo. The older boy grinned, teeth showing as he moved in.

"You let me kiss you."

"My mum and my brother were there! Why would you do that?"

"You were too cute," Kuroo grabbed his waist, pulling him closer. Kei sighed, wrapping his arms around Kuroo's shoulders.

"What am I going to do with you?" he said, looking him in the eye, and Kuroo could swear he was pouting a little bit. "Love me, feed me, never leave me," he whispered, closing the gap between their mouths.

Tsukishima had not been a particularly good kisser when they had started to go out. He admitted he'd only had one girlfriend before, and he didn't actually like her that much anyway. That was the only experience he'd had with kissing, so Tetsurou had taught him the majority of what he knew. And it made the world of difference as he leaned in, pressing his lips against his. Tsukishima pulled his arms tightly, pressing his body closer. His glasses dug into the side of Kuroo's face, but he didn't mind. He grabbed at Kei's waist, pulling him closer, kissing him harder.

Tsukishima broke away, gasping for breath. "I thought we were going out," he said as Kuroo leaned in to kiss his neck. "We are. Eventually," he murmured. Tsukishima smirked,

"And you were the one who pleaded with me to get up and everything," he sighed as Kuroo kissed his neck harder, and put his hands firmly on his shoulders. "C'mon, you wanted to go out, so let's go," he said, pulling away. Tetsurou smiled, biting his lip as he grabbed Tsukishima's hand as he picked his bag up.

 

Kuroo was born and bred in Tokyo, he'd only had trips out of the city, so he wasn't used to it. He was used to cramp spaces and busy streets, a lot of noise and a lot of people. So this town was new. Closed in by mountains, within walking distance of the ocean, it seemed perfect, and was a world away from the city he was used to. And yet it seemed like the most natural place for Kei. "I have to go to a park to see forests like this," Tetsurou breathed, "And yet you just...go out your back garden, and you're in the woods."

Kei looked over his shoulder at him, "Yeah but you live in an overly expensive tiny house and your snot's probably black from all the pollution."

He laughed, pulling at Tsukishima's hand. "You're such a country bumpkin."

"No I'm not. Just because I live in a town and not a city does _not_ make me a country bumpkin. This is not a village, there is a supermarket within walking distance from here, please stop making it sound like I live in the middle of fucking nowhere."

"Jeez, tetchy much?"

"I'm not tetchy, you're just being wrong and I'm correcting you."

Kuroo smiled, shaking his head as he followed Tsukishima up the widening path. It was rocky and didn't look well travelled. He was going to ask, but Kei seemed to know where he was going, and that was enough to reassure him. They walked for a while, hand in hand, talking about things. Kuroo asked questions about the town, about the area and Tsukishima answered him. They talked about volleyball, about how Karasuno's club was going to be under the hands of Ennoshita and Tanaka next year, how Kuroo's mother was always hounding Kenma's mum, and everything except the fact that Kuroo was leaving in two weeks.

Kei was upset. He knew that he was upset. That was one of the reasons why he had been originally reluctant about entering a long distance relationship. They spent such little actual time together. Just training camp time, maybe a spare weekend if one of them had the time to travel, but that was rare. Yes, they skyped nearly every day, and kept in touch, it was still difficult. Tsukishima, although he didn't look like it, liked physical reassurance. To the other members of the club, to his other friends, he may have seemed fine. Well, not to Yamaguchi maybe. But to others, they would have thought he was okay. And Kuroo thought that too, to begin with. But Tsukishima had eventually gotten to the point where he had to explain it. He got panicked sometimes, he got depressed. He _was_ depressed, and he was trying to move past it, but it was hard and he needed support. Kuroo wanted to be there for him, but Kei needed physical contact and reassurance. There was only so much that could be given over a video call. That was one of the hardest things about having a long distance relationship, sat on the other side of the camera having to watch but not being able to make it any better. So holding his hand, being able to hold him and kiss him and speak to him face to face was so relieving.

Tsukishima stopped, squeezing his hand, "this is where I wanted to sit," he said quietly, putting his bag down. It was a nice, quiet spot looking out over the town. It was a relatively private spot as well, and Kuroo liked it. he put the blanket down that Tsukishima had insisted on bringing with them. "Why did you even make me bring this? Like...it's not wet or anything."

"I don't want leaves on my ass, or to sit in fox shit," he huffed, sitting in one of the corners of the blankets. Kuroo sighed, sitting down next to him. "So babe, what are we gunna do out here, then?"

"Talk shit, listen to music, watch those cat videos you've sent me but I'm too lazy to actually watch."

Tetsurou gave a scandalised gasp, glaring at him, "You told me you actually watched them!"

"Yeah, yeah, well I'll see them now," he said, lying down.

"Are we sharing headphones or?"

"Well we _were_ going to, but when you took me out to that theme park, it seems you got me something that means we don't have to share," and Tsukishima couldn't help but smile to himself as he brought out the little tacky, bejewelled Hello Kitty headphone splitter.

It had been one of their first dates, during the Tokyo Training Camp and the two were trying to spend as much time as they could together without rousing the suspicions of the others. There was a funfair in town at that point, an awful one, but it was the only place Kuroo could think to go. It had been a pretty alright time, if only because the two of them were able to make their own fun, and Kuroo insisted on paying for everything - this was in the very beginning of their relationship when he wasn't entirely comfortable with the idea of a same-sex relationship and was still trying to treat Kei like his girlfriend. He'd also insisted on winning a prize for him at the fair. Now, Kuroo's hand-eye coordination was pretty good, but there was a reason he was not the pitcher for the baseball team. He'd only ended up winning him a small tacky headphone splitter - nowhere near the huge plush he had originally hoped for, but Tsukishima still accepted the present.

Kuroo scoffed, seeing it again after months had passed. "You still have it? I thought you'd of thrown it out!"

"Why would I throw it out? It's like the first thing you got me. And it's actually surprisingly good quality."

"Don't tell me you actually use it?!" Kuroo breathed in horror.

"Of course I do, what do you want me to do - look at it? I mean I don't bring it out around Hinata or Tanaka - I'm not that fucking stupid, but Yachi and Yamaguchi don't mention it," he pulled his phone out, shamelessly plugging his pink sparkly splitter into the headphone jack, extending it for Kuroo's headphones.

They caught up as they sat like that, nestled close together. They sat with their shoulders touching, their legs intertwined with one another's. And then they watched the cat videos Kuroo wanted to show him, and then as Kei's phone ran low on power, they swapped to Kuroo's phone.

They were laying down by then, Tsukishima leaning his head on Kuroo's chest, dosing in the sun, brushing his hand up and down Kuroo's hip slowly. He'd first started to like the blonde boy when he'd first met him. And originally, it was just because he was pretty. And when he'd gotten to know him better, he'd gotten scared that maybe Kei wasn't the type of person who wanted relationships, but when he'd stuck his neck out and actually asked him, he found it was quite the opposite. Tsukishima was amazing in relationships. He was comforting and affectionate and everything Kuroo couldn't quite believe he would actually be.

And the two of them were quite content to lay there in the warm sun, practically sleeping, huddled together, content and satisfied, when Tetsurou's phone decided to betray him. He knew what the song was on the introduction, but he was frozen - couldn't actually believe that song was playing _now_ of all times. And then the singing started and there was no escape as Tsukishima sat up and stared at him.

"Is this K-pop?" he asked accusingly.

There was a pause. "No?" Kuroo replied.

"Oh my god. This is fucking Hyuna, isn't it? You listen to Hyuna?"             

"No?" he said again, and Tsukishima rolled his eyes.

"And I was starting to think your taste in music was _decent_ as well, oh my god." He pulled his earphones out, reaching for Kuroo's phone to shut off the music, but he beat him to it. The two of them sat there, looking at each other. "Are you still judging me for that?" he asked after a moment. Tsukishima scoffed,

"I'm always going to be judging you for that."

Kuroo laughed, pulling the boy closer, so he was practically sat in his lap, and he didn't pull away. Their chests were pushed close together, and Kuroo smirked at him. "I really, really miss you when you're away, you know?" he murmured, and Kei rolled his eyes,

"You're not starting this aga-"

"It's true," he said, kissing his cheek, his hands pocketing themselves in the back of Tsukishima's jeans. The younger boy ran his hands through his hair, holding his neck as he stared into his face, smirking slightly. "And I missed you when you're away too," he said quietly, like he was afraid someone else was going to hear him admitting his weakness. Kuroo sighed, pressing a kiss quickly to his lips. "And one day, if you want we can get a place together and we'll never have to spend any time apart and this is all gunna be worth it."

Kei pressed another kiss to his lips, "and we won't have to sneak off to the middle of the woods to make out," he added quietly, leaning closer in to Kuroo's chest.

"I love you, Tsukki," he breathed, nuzzling into him.

"I love you too, you ass."


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Is this ever even gunna go anyway lmao  
> Sorry if this is boring, i promsie I'll pick up at some point

For some reason, Kuroo wasn't able to sleep well that night. There was something about the clock in Akiteru's room - the constant tick, tick, tick that kept him on the edge of consciousness, and there was something about how the mattress dug into his shoulders that meant he couldn't get comfortable. And for some reason the night just wasn't as dark enough as he needed and it was all impossible to get to sleep, and he was getting frustrated. He fisted a hand in his hair, turning over to face Akiteru's bed, shutting his eyes tight. He sighed angrily, trying to rearrange his sleeping position again, to no avail.

"Kuroo, are you awake?" Akiteru's voice was hushed and hesitant, but it shocked him momentarily.

"Yeah," he replied his voice wavering.

"Can I ask you stuff?"

"Go ahead,"

Akiteru sighed sleepily, shifting in his bed. "Why my little brother?"

Kuroo bit his lip, "That's...um, well?" he swallowed, "Do you have a girlfriend? Or a boyfriend? Or a...person, or people?"

"I have a girlfriend,"

"Then...why her?"

Akiteru sighed, and then he chuckled, "I guess I see what you mean. But like...out of every guy you could meet in Tokyo. I imagine the...gay community there is bigger than we have here."

Kuroo pulled his forearm over his eyes. "Heck, I don't even know. He's not a _nice_ kid you know?" and then he remembered he was talking to his older brother. "Well uh, I mean he's kinda-"

"No, I get what you mean. He's a little difficult, but he's lovable."

"Yeah, it's like that. I mean, he's not that bad, I like him."

Akiteru snorted, "Well I'm glad of that, that could have been a little bit awkward, considering you're his boyfriend."

Kuroo smirked, his eyes closing of their own accord.

"You know, I didn't even think that Kei was gay, until he came home one day and he started talking about his boyfriend. It surprised me, and I don't know what I was expecting from his boyfriend."

"Is he gay?" Kuroo asked, raising his eyebrows, "I thought he had a girlfriend before me."

Akiteru shifted in his bed again, "Yeah, when he was like twelve. No one's serious about anyone when you're twelve. It was more of a status thing than anything else,"

Kuroo shrugged, "What were you expecting me to be like, then?"

"I don't know, tall I suppose. Not as muscular. Kei's only slim, and his friends are all fairly slim, so...who knows, really."  Kuroo laughed again, running a hand through his hair. He was getting tired now, finally. "Do you think you'll be together for a long time?"

"I hope so. I like him a lot, if Tsukki likes me back as much, I hope we can be together for a long time."

"Kei's only sixteen. He's so young, I'm worried he's stepping into something serious too soon."

Kuroo bit his lip, looking up at the older brother. He could understand that worry. There was only two years between Tetsurou and Kei, but as he knew that as he went to university, and Kei stayed in high school, the gap was only going to widen.

"I guess I'm going to have to hope he's mature enough to tell me if he wants out," he admitted.

He heard Akiteru let out a breath. "I think you're alright, Kuroo," he muttered.

 

Kuroo must have fallen asleep not long after that, and he wasn't sure how long he was asleep, but it didn't feel like long. He woke suddenly, his eyes dazed, confused at first. It was lighter outside - the curtains were a pale grey colour, and Kuroo dug the balls of his hands into his eyes as he tried to shut out the light. And then he heard the sound that had woken him

Retching.

Kuroo sat up in bed. Akiteru was snoozing next to him, his hand hanging over the side of the bed. The vomiting sounds didn't seem to be female, so he didn't think it was their mother. So it could have only been Tsukki.

Kuroo peeled back the bed covers, tiptoeing out into the corridor. He looked through Kei's door, and sure enough, the covers were thrown back, and he wasn't there. The light was on in the bathroom.

He knocked first, calling his name out cautiously. Tsukishima was bent over the toilet, coughing and spitting. He looked up, without his glasses, his eyes unfocussed and red. His face was blotchy with tears. "I'm sorry," he said, throwing up again. Kuroo sighed, rubbing his back slowly. He wasn't sure what to do.

"Are you alright?" It was a stupid question. He regretted asking that almost immediately. Of course he wasn't. Tsukishima wouldn't be _vomiting_ if he was fine.

"Stomach ache," he coughed. "Probably one of your city bugs. We're not as used to germs out here," he joked.

Kuroo sighed, "do you want me to get your mum? Are you okay? Do you want to go back to bed?"

Kei shook his head, brushing the sweat off his forehead. "I threw up in my bed..." he muttered.

Kuroo pursed his lips, "I'm sorry," he held his boyfriend close to him, comforting him as he continued to vomit. He stopped for five minutes, a little less, heaving over the bowl. "Are you finished?" Tetsurou asked quietly.

"I don't know," Tsukishima's voice was nasally and rough. His skin was pale and blotchy. He looked ill.

"Brush your teeth, get some water, I'll change your bed," Kuroo said, helping the boy to his feet.

"Kuroo you don't have to-"

"Nonsense, you're in too much of a state to do it, I don't mind."

 

Kuroo helped out at a kid's youth group sometimes, so maybe that was why the sight of vomit didn't make him want to be sick himself. Or maybe he just really liked Tsukishima that much he genuinely didn't mind stripping his bed. He redressed the bed, before going to check on Kei. He was huddled in the corner near the bath, knees curled up to his chest. His teeth were chattering. "Are you cold?" Kuroo asked, already stripping out of the hoodie he was wearing. He offered it to him, and the blond looked up at him. "It's fine, you don't need to give me that," he said, trying to squirm away.

"No, no, c'mon, take it, it's already pre-heated and everything." Tsukishima glared at him for a moment, his eyes unfocussed and hazy, before he gave in and let Tetsurou dress him. "I can do that myself," he moaned. Kuroo dismissed it, helping him to his feet, helping him back to his room. "Do you still feel sick?" he asked as he helped him settle again. He nodded sleepily, nuzzling back into the pillow. Kuroo sat on the edge of the bed, and he leaned over, brushing the hair off his forehead, pressing his lips to the skin there. He leaned back, watching him for a moment or two, before he shifted over, and crawled into bed next to him. Kei groaned quietly. "My mum's gunna freak out..." he muttered.

"I'm only cuddling you. I'm not going to try and have sex with you, you'd probably vomit on me,"

"True."

Kuroo snuggled closer, his face pressed into the crook of Tsukishima's neck. "Tell me if you feel worse, okay?"

"Sure."

He pressed a kiss to his collarbone, "I love you,"

"You too."

 

When Kuroo wakes the next morning, Tsukishima's mother is sat on the side of the bed, speaking quietly with her son. She looked up as he stirred, and smiled to herself. "You know we asked you to sleep in Akiteru's room because we didn't trust you in Kei's," she said, and Kuroo bites his lip.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I was just worried about him last night,"

"I know, it's okay, don't worry," she said, "maybe we'll trust you and him together after all, since you've been in here both nights already."

Kuroo couldn't help but smile at that - that was what he was hoping for in the beginning, anyway, a chance to sleep with Kei, and be alone with him.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've had four fits, sixteen exams and I'm running on empty :')  
> I tried, I'm sorry if it's shit.

Tsukishima seemed to feel worse in the morning. He stumbled down the stairs with the assistance of Kuroo and his mum, and he promptly curled up on the sofa, ignoring breakfast entirely. His mother watched him anxiously as she sat down. "When did Kei start feeling ill?"

"I don't know," Kuroo answered quietly, "I woke up and he was throwing up so I cleaned up and stuff,"

"Oh, you cleaned up for him?" She frowned, "You really didn't have to do that, you should have woken me up or-"

"It's alright, I don't mind," he dismissed, watching Kei's feet as they dangled over the edge of the sofa.

"But you don't have to do that again today, you know? Although hopefully he can make it to the toilet first..."

"I did, like, the second time," Kei croaked from the sofa. He sounded worse than he had last night.

"Well let's hope you get it the first time as well..." his mother huffed, brushing some hair out of her face.

  
He had a fever when Kuroo checked his temperature, but Tsukishima was also complaining of cold, so he had no choice but to snuggle up against him to keep him warm, even if he was a literal human furnace. "You're gunna get sick if you stay so close," Kei said hoarsely.

"I'm from the city, nothing's gunna infect me, it's fine. I rarely get sick anyway." He turned on the TV, content to let Tsukishima doze on his lap, "That's stupid ass reasoning," he slurred as he shut his eyes, cuddling close down into his stomach. Even when he was ill, he was still being a smart bitch. Kuroo smiled, letting his hands trail through his hair. He felt himself drifting off a little bit, his head dropping down, his breathing steadying, and it was just the two of them sleeping, the TV softly playing in the background. It was warm and comfortable. Kuroo never thought that it would be like this in the relationship, when they'd originally started dating, he had thought it would be mostly sexual and nothing more. Tsukishima had seemed uncomfortable on their first date, but as their relationships went on, it seemed like he'd become more comfortable. He'd never seemed like the person to want to cuddle but it turned out he was. He was very enthusiastic about cuddling. Maybe it was just because of the huge distance between them usually, but whether they were just hanging around or making out, he liked to touch, liked to cling to Kuroo like he was going to disappear if he didn't hold tight enough. Kuroo dozed in and out of consciousness, and as he woke, his eyes heavily lidded as he watched Kei sleeping. His face was relaxed, his usually stern expression gone. He looked younger, cuter. Kuroo brushed his hands down his face, his skin was smooth, soft. He didn't have much fat across his face, and his cheekbones were prominent. He was so beautiful. Kuroo bit his lip, stroking his hand through the curls of Tsukishima's hair. He remembered how Tsukishima had reluctantly told him that his hair was naturally curly, and he'd cut it short because it was so much easier to deal with. It was growing longer now, and Kuroo liked the curls, even if he was never going to admit it to Tsukki. He brushed some of the hair off his forehead, leaning down, kissing him gently. "Do you always do this when I'm asleep?" Kei murmured sleepily, his voice rough.

Kuro smirked, "Only when you're ill and can't fend for yourself." Tsukishima groaned, getting up slowly,

"I feel like I'm gunna be sick,"

Kuroo helped him up, "Remember what your mum said about being sick, get to the toilet."

"Yeah, yeah, I'm going,"

"Are you gunna be alright?"

"Mhm," he muttered, wandering off dizzily. Kuroo stayed still for a moment, but only a moment. He heard retching, and he couldn't stay still while he knew that Tsukishima felt ill. He stood in the doorway, hovering, not knowing what to do. Tsukishima moaned, resting his cheek against the side of the bowl. "I'm so tired," he muttered. "Wanna go back to bed?"

"Possibly," he rolled over, hissing slightly as he rubbed his face. "Jesus, I hate being ill."

He stayed where he was, sitting on the floor, breathing heavily, and Kuroo slid to the floor, watching him. Tsukishima sat there, his phone vibrated, and he moaned again, pulling it out of his pocket. "Fuck. Me," he muttered, and Kuroo raised an eyebrow. "We haven't even talked about that," he murmured, and then he paused, "What is  it?"he asked more seriously.

"The club scheduled some friendly game or some shit with Seijou. Today. Yamaguchi's coming over now..." he sighed. "Fuck...."

"Well you can't go," Kuroo reasoned.

"I know but...shit, you know how the team is, always wanting to try and force people into games. They keep saying it's the last time for everyone to be together," he looked up at Kuroo, "Can you go for me?"

"What?"

"Well Akiteru can't go, he's not a blocker."

"They have other blockers who can play can't they?"

"Please, Kuroo. You're friends with Daichi, aren't you?"

"Yeah, but I came to stay with you-"

"Well you can see your other friends now too,"

"Why are you so insistent?"

"You know how my team are...really fucking pushy, and they literally won't leave us alone until we do something, please..."

Kuroo wasn't used to him pleading, and he couldn't say no to those soft brown eyes. "Fine, okay, okay, I'll go."

"Good, because Yamaguchi is on his way."

They lay together on the sofa for a little while longer, until they heard the knock at the door. "Have fun," Tsukishima said, biting his lip. Kuroo hesitated, leaning, kissing him gently. "Love you," he whispered. Kei looked at him softly. "You too," he touched Kuroo's cheek, smiling a little.

 

Yamaguchi seemed surprised when Kuroo showed up on the doorstep instead of Tsukishima. "Oh, um, hi Kuroo...I thought that you were coming later, uh so...Tsukki - is he in?"

"He's ill...so he said I should go instead...if that's okay,"

Yamaguchi looked surprised, but he covered it quickly. "Yeah, yeah, that's fine."

The walk was awkward, and there was palpable distance between them as they walked. Kuroo wasn't even half as nervous meeting Kei's family than he was meeting Yamaguchi. He wanted to be friends with him, but it was so awkward. He knew the two of them were close - close like he and Kenma were close, and he wanted it to be less difficult. "Tsukki said you were coming over but...I didn't know when, sorry."

"No, no it's fine," Kuroo breathed, "Does he talk a lot? About me?"

Yamaguchi smirked, "Well, as much as you'd expect Tsukki to talk."

"Not much then,"

"He has said a lot about you...before you um, asked him out and stuff,"

"Oh really?" Kuroo asked, turning to the freckled boy, "Didn't realise there was much to say,"

"You should hear him," Yamaguchi rolled his eyes, smiling slightly. Kuroo smirked, walking closer. Maybe things weren't so bad. Hell, maybe Tsukishima would even be okay meeting Kenma. Maybe they'd be fine.

 

They all seemed surprised when Yamaguchi showed up with Kuroo. Not that he was surprised. "You didn't tell me that you'd be here," Daichi yelled.

"Sorry, I was with my boyfriend, you know how it is,"

"Speaking of your boyfriend, why isn't he here?"

"He came down with something, so I'm here instead," the other boys shifted uncomfortably and Kuroo smiled dropping his bag, "C'mon, captain of Nekoma here, why wouldn't you want me on your team?"

And then a voice behind him, "Did I just hear the captain of Nekoma?" Kuroo turned and saw a man standing there, in light blue t-shirt, a volleyball under his arm. Kuroo had no idea who he was. "This is...Oikawa, from Seijou," Daichi introduced, "And this is Kuroo, from Nekoma."

"Nekoma? As in the team who beat you guys in nationals?" Oikawa's eyes went over him, like a snake's. "So you fucked the team...and now you're fucking their first year?"

Suddenly all the eyes in the room were on Kuroo in an uncomfortable silence. He bit his lip, Oikawa was smiling expectantly, and Kuroo didn't really know what to do. But he felt the expectation on him, to say something, to brag maybe? He knew what they thought about him and Tsukishima. He knew they had their suspicion, when the two of them had gone out late at night. He knew they thought that they were nothing more than some overly promiscuous couple. And they weren't. Not at all. "We actually....haven't...yet."


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this probably sucks Im sorry :')  
> Im trying   
> I gotta update like 5 fics and I wanna write like 12 more omggg

Oikawa dropped the volleyball he was holding. "What? Seriously? You haven't?" he asked, and Kuroo shrugged. "We haven't talked about it or anything so..." he trailed off, looking at everyone's faces. Yamaguchi was blushing furiously - obviously talking about his best friend's sex life was a bit more than he was comfortable doing. Daichi coughed trying to clear the awkward air, "well, should we...get on with this, then?" he murmured, clearly putting distance between Oikawa and Kuroo. Kuroo knew when someone was trying to provoke him, and yet...he was ready for anything except for provocation about his and Kei's relationship. It was a sensitive topic, since they were still in their early days, and the relationship was so strained, with how much distance there was between them. They'd only really had a couple of real dates and that was during the Tokyo training camp. They were so new to this, and they were both so scared of this failing. So having someone poke at it...it hurt.

Daichi nudged him during break, "You okay?" he asked and Kuroo shrugged.

"Is it weird? That me and Tsukki haven't...?"

Daichi shrugged, "That's between you and him, and nobody else. If you want to, then fine, if not, that's also fine. We don't have any business in that," he muttered.

Kuroo sighed, "Do you want to know, though? As my friend?"

"I probably would, if I didn't know Tsukishima. But I know your boyfriend very well and I'm very, very hesitant to know any details that might make it hard to look him in the eye," he muttered.

"You won't need to, soon. You're leaving anyway, same as I am."

"Don't remind me," Daichi groaned. "Still, don't tell me anything, don't spoil that kid for me, I don't need that." Kuroo smiled, biting his lip.

 

When he came back, Tsukishima was on the sofa, covered with blankets as he shivered against the fever. Kuroo changed his clothing, washing himself from the sweat, and climbed in next to him. "Kuroo?" Kei bit his lip, looking up at him through his eyelashes. "How was it?"

"I met Oikawa," he said quietly, and Tsukishima froze.

"Ah."

Kuroo smiled, nuzzling into him. "He's alright, once you get passed the greeting I guess,"

Tsukishima grunted quietly, "I dunno, never got past the greeting. Don't particularly care from him either way." He licked his lips, pressing his forehead to Kuroo's chin. Under the blanket, his hands slid across Kuro's skin, across his hips. He smiled as Kuroo linked their hands together. "I'm judging you feel better then?" he asked quietly. Kei nodded, "Just a little bit..."

Kuroo waited for absolute silence, making sure nobody was around, before he pressed his lips to Kei's. The boy bit his lip, reaching to run his hand through Kuroo's hair. "Missed you today,"

"Mhm, I can tell."

Tsukishima sighed, "No need to be so uptight about it," he said. Kuroo kissed him.

"I love you," he said quietly.

 

After dinner, Kuroo was allowed to stay in Kei's bedroom, which was a shock to both of them. They had no idea his mother would be so trustful of him. So they both sat together on Kei's bed. Tsukishima was sat on his lap, his hands on Kuroo's shoulders, kissing him as quietly as he could, trying not to raise suspicion of those asleep in the rooms around them. Kei pulled apart for air, his eyes unfocussed without his glasses. Kuroo wanted nothing more than to kiss him and to hold him, and he bit his lip. He couldn't stop thinking about what the others had said today. "Is there a reason we haven't spoken about sex yet?" Kuroo asked, and Tsukishima shifted in his lap. "What are you talking about?"

"You know. Sex. We've been together for months, and I've never so much as seen your thighs from volleyball. I've never seen under your shirt."

"I've never seen under _your_ shirt, either," Tsukishima argued. And Kuroo smirked.

"Do you want to?"

Kei sighed, sitting back, his chest heaving from the deep kissing. Tsukishima pressed his lips firmly together, thinking. Kuroo let his fingers slide up his back thoughtfully, "Do you not want to?" he whispered quietly, and Kei shrugged. Kuroo leaned closer, pressing their chests close together. "I'm serious, Kei," he said, "You need to tell me what you want."

"Why don't you tell me what you want?" he replied, running his hands through his hair. Kuroo smiled,

"I want to know about you and what you want from me, I want to know how sexually active you want to be, and how far you want to go. I want to know what you look like without your clothes on, and I want you to be happy and satisfied with  me," he said, drawing his legs up so Tsukishima was sitting higher up, looking down at him. He was blushing, looking away, avoiding his eyes. "How can you speak like that?" he asked. Kuroo shrugged.

"I trust you. And I want to give you everything that you want." He leaned closer, pressing his lips to the base of Kei's throat. "Why don't you want me to look at your body?" he asked. Kei shrugged,

"I just don't like it?"

"Why not? Tell me what you don't like."

Tsukishima sighed, "I'm thin, and I always have been. I hate it. You and everybody else, are so muscular and I'm just...ribs and bone."

Kuroo cocked his head, "So? What's wrong with that? You're healthy, aren't you? Still up and functioning? No health problems from being thin?"

Kei shrugged, "No."

"Then what is the issue?"

"I just..."

"Can I see? Can I touch you?" Kuroo asked, his hands feeling at the skin under Tsukishima's shirt, lifting the fabric up as he went. Tsukishima held his shirt down.

"You can touch but...I don't want you to look," he said quietly. Tetsurou nodded, biting his lip as he brought his hands up, touching higher under Tsukishima's jumper. Kei gasped and sighed as Kuroo's cold fingers raked higher, over his ribs and his chest. He took his time, holding him close to him, making sure to feel everything he wanted to feel. "Will you ever let me see your body?" Kuroo asked, his hands fully under Kei's clothes.

"Maybe one day. Not now."

"Wanna see my chest?"

Tsukki smirked, running a hand across Kuroo's face. "Sure, if you're offering." Kuroo smiled, withdrawing his hands to pull his own shirt off. Kei watched him, not sure what to do as he stared at the muscle and tone of Kuroo's chest. His skin was darker than his, and his muscles were well formed and perfect. Nothing like the thinness of Tsukki's own body. Kuroo watched him, doing nothing but sitting back and staring at him. "I feel underdressed now," he admitted, laughing. "Can't you show me anything?" Tsukki bit his lip, his hand resting on Kuroo's chest. "I can...take off my trousers, I guess..." Kuroo raised an eyebrow expectantly. Tsukishima sighed, slowly getting off his bed to kick his pyjama bottoms off. "You could have made that sexier," Kuroo murmured, watching him from the bed.

Tsukishima rolled his eyes, "If you wanted sexy you shouldn't have dated me," he replied, throwing his pyjama bottoms onto the floor. Kuroo sighed, staring at Kei's legs contently. "Can you touch your toes?" he asked, and Tsukishima frowned.

"Of course I can," he sounded insulted as he leaned down and tapped his toes with his fingers.

"No I meant, like, can you like...face the dresser and do it?" Kuroo grinned, and Tsukishima glared at him, but the flush across his cheeks gave him away.

"If you wanted to see my butt you should just ask, it's flat anyway."

"Seriously? Like, completely flat?" Kuroo asked, leaning forward. Kei nodded, turning to the side to show, and Kuroo smirked. "Oh wow, it seriously is. You have a flat butt. It's still a nice butt, though," he said.

Tsukki rolled his eyes, pulling his hoodie down over his boxers. "How can you say things like that?"

"Life's too short to be embarrassed, Tsukki," Kuroo muttered. The younger boy stood there hesitantly, his legs thin and pale, but strong at the same time. They were small and delicate and had so much power behind them. "Come back here, okay?" he said, and Tsukishima silently followed, crawling back onto the bed, to lie with him. Kuroo kissed his cheek gently, and he curled into lean on his bare chest. Kuroo's hand curled around his thigh, holding him, stroking it. "Can you come visit me often when I'm in uni?" he asked.

"As much as I can. Come visit me too, alright?" Tsukishima's voice was very quiet. "Do you...." he trailed off, staying silent.

"What?"

"It's nothing."

"No, it's something - tell me what you were gunna say."

Tsukishima sighed, "Do you ever regret that you're dating me. That it's not somebody from Tokyo or-"

"Kei," he gasped, sitting up suddenly. "Why would I regret dating you? I asked you first...why would I ever regret that?"

The blonde boy looked away, "We live so far apart and it's just...it might not be worth it for you..."

"I wouldn't even have asked you if I didn't think you were worth it. I already knew how much trouble it would be but I still... I wanna be with you. Do you....not want to be with me?"

Kei startled at that staring at him. "Of course I want to be with you..."

"Then don't ask dumb questions, okay? We will manage it."

The other boy pressed his lips firmly together, and then his lower lip started to tremble. Kuroo didn't know what to do, he was about to do something, but Kei covered his eyes, "Don't look," he whimpered, and Kuroo turned around in bed, his back to him.

Tsukishima wasn't one to cry. But here he was, quietly sniffing into Kuroo's back. After a long moment, he reached his hand around Tetsurou's chest, and the older boy reached out and held it tightly. "I fucking hate this," he whispered.

Kuroo bit his lip, "I'm so sorry," he said.

"No it's just... I want this to be easy. And it's not. I wanna see you and then when I do...I just...I'm thinking about how little time I have until you go away again."

"One day it'll be better, though. And I'll get to come home and see your cute little grumpy ass face, and I can share a bed with you all the time, and we can live together, and it'll be fine."

"I want that now, though."

"You've still got two more years in school."

"What if I drop out and go with you?"

"Don't do that, I don't have enough money to support you, too."

He whined, and hugged closer into Kuroo's back, holding him tightly until they fell asleep.

 

They were woken suddenly the next morning by banging on the door, and by the time they'd woken up and realised their half-naked state, Kuroo only just had enough time to find a shirt to throw on before Mrs Tsukishima came barging in through the door. "Mum?! What the heck?" Kei yelled grumpily, finding his glasses on the bedside table.

"Look, honey, I know, and I'm sorry but...I figured you'd really want to know," she panted. Akiteru was standing in the doorway, biting his nails.

"Know what?" Kei asked, looking between his family. Kuroo, who had no fucking clue what was going on, just sat there blinking, his heart still hammering in his chest. Tsukishima was still sat there in his underwear under the covers. They were so close they could have been caught. Akiteru and his mother looked at one another, before looking back at the baby of the family. "Your father just called," his mum said at last, "And he's in Japan, heading down for a visit tomorrow."

 


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it took so long. Im struggling w/a lot of things right now. And I'm addicted to embroidery. Help.

"You can spend the day with Daichi, I don't mind."

"Tsukki, please, I'll be fine."

"No, you don't have to be civil, it's fine. You can spend the day with someone else."

"I can meet your dad, don't worry,"

"Tetsurou. You really don't have to do this."

They were sat on Kei's bed, and Kei's hand was resting over Kuroo's as he spoke. His hair was even messier than usual, his eyes still blurred with sleep. Tetsurou sighed, "Why don't you want me to meet your dad? Are you scared I'm gunna mess this up?"

Tsukishima bit his lip. "It's not that."

"Then what?"

Tsukishima ran a hand through his hair. "My dad is an ass. He left us for some....white bitch and moved _countries_ to get away from us. That's huge betrayal and he tries to make it up to us but...there is no way to make up for that. My own father didn't even want to stay, so. I just...you don't have to meet him if it's any unnecessary stress because he's not important."

Kuroo breathed out, "Well...it sounds awkward but I'll stay with you. If anything to see how much of a dick he is."

Tsukishima nodded minutely. He looked relieved. "Well I guess you can stay. Just try and be as passively obnoxious as you can."

Kuroo raised an eyebrow, "To the whole family?"

"No, no, not my sisters, just my father and his wife."

"....Okay."

"I have two sisters, they're twins. They're six years old," he pulled out his phone, scrolling down his images. "They're called Kayleigh and Gracie," he said, showing Kuroo a picture. They were two blonde haired girls. They looked similar to Kei, and it was clear that they were siblings. The two girls were completely identical. "How do I tell who's who?" Kuroo asked, and Kei shrugged.

"I'm sure I can probably tell you based on what they're wearing."

"How do _you_ tell your sisters apart?"

"I don't know, you just kind of learn. My sisters are really nice, surprisingly. They haven't been tainted with the bitter reality of the world."

"So they're nothing like you then?" Kuroo smirked. Kei rolled his eyes.

"Shut up. I'm bitter for a reason."

"Mhm sure. So....nice to the girls, irritating to the father and step-mother."

"She's called Louise."

"Hm?"

"Step-mum. We don't call her that she's just Louise."

"Okay, I think I got it."

 

The next day Kei seemed to have lapsed back. "Honestly, it's fine, I'm sure Daichi won't mind it if you go and stay with him for the day. You don't have to do this."

Akiteru nodded in the corner, "None of my girlfriends have ever met dad. Not even ones of years, Kuroo, you don't have to do this."

"Now both of you are ganging up on me?" Kuroo asked, sitting down on the arm of the sofa next to Kei.

"We're not ganging up on you, we're just trying to protect you."

"Is your father really that bad?"

"Yes." The two of them said in unison.

Kuroo sighed, about to retort when he heard their mother call from upstairs. "Cars coming in!"

"Kay," the two boys called back. And then nobody moved. Kuroo looked at the two of them.

"Aren't you going to open the door?"

"No, we don't want them to know we're expecting them," Kei replied.

"Is that why you asked me to make sure I dressed casually?"

"Yeah. We want to give off the exact 'Who gives a fuck attitude'."

They heard the doorbell go, and Kuroo sucked in a breath. "Are you gunna get that?"

Akiteru shrugged. "In a minute."

They heard their mother call from upstairs. "Kei! Can you get that?"

Kei sighed, "Akiteru, go get it."

They got up slowly, the older brother making it to the door. Kuroo didn't know what he expected when he opened the door. The two little girls running in was expected, but still a shock. What was even more shocking was the two brothers picking them up and Kei _smiling_ at his little sister. "Kayleigh! You've grown! And you've cut your hair, wow it looks nice!" Hearing him express actual honest emotion in his voice was a shock. And it was so cute it hurt. Kei then addressed the other girl, presumably Gracie, and then he turned to the adults on the doorway. Kei's father was tall. He was just about taller than his youngest son, but not by much. His wife stood next to him, her face tense as she watched the children. "And dad. Oh, and Louise, what an unnecessary surprise this is," Kei said, his face stern once more. Now Kuroo knew what he meant by being passive aggressive.

His father smiled, clearly used to the cold treatment as he stepped into the home. It was then that he noticed Kuroo.

The two of them stared at each other, and it was odd - staring into the face of the father of the man Tetsurou loved so much, and seeing nothing in similarity between the two. Sure they looked similar, but their facial expression, their stance, everything about the way they presented was different. It was clear that the relationship was strained, there was nothing to recognise in this man. He had given nothing to his sons.

He cleared his throat. "Who's this, then? A friend, Akiteru?" He asked, regarding his oldest. Akiteru and Kei exchanged a smirk before Kei put his sister on the floor and approached Kuroo. "No, this is Tetsurou, my boyfriend, absolute light and love of my life."

The tension between the step-mother and father in that moment was palpable.

"How long have you been together?"

"Four months."

His dad smiled awkwardly, "Four months isn't really a long enough time to decide that somebody is the love of your life, Kei-"

"But I thought you and Louise were only together for less than a year before you got married? So what, am I supposed to decide at what....eight months?"

His dad flushed, looking down.

"Well um, nice to meet you, Tetsuro-"

"Kuroo," Kei barked. "You've just met. You don't have the right to call him by his first name. Or have you spent so long in Canada you've forgotten etiquette in Japan?" he cocked his head to one side, regarding his father coldly.

He nodded, "Right, Kuroo, nice to meet you."

This was the time for Kuroo to speak. He couldn't mess this up for Kei. "And for you, Mr. Tsukishima. Kei's told me a lot about you."

"Good things, I hope," he laughed. Kuroo smiled, exchanging a look with Kei.

"Yes, let's just pretend they were."

He felt Tsukishima squeeze his hand in gratitude. So he was doing this right. God, it felt weird. Being disrespectful like that. But he was doing the right thing. Tsukki was happy with him...so it was the right thing to do, right?

"Hotaru, Louise, if you'd like to come through." Thankfully his mother was the point to decrease tension, and attention was taken off the couple. Kuroo breathed a sigh of relief.

Meanwhile the girl, Kayleigh in the blue shirt was staring at Kuroo, taking him in. She looked shockingly like her brother. "Why are you holding Kei's hand?"

"He's my boyfriend, Kayleigh," Kei explained.

"What does that mean?" Gracie asked. And the three men in the hallway exchanged looks. Kuroo really didn't want to explain homosexuality to six year olds. Akiteru placed his sister on the floor. "Why don't you two go with Kei and Tetsurou. Go on a little walk outside. I'll stay with our parents," he suggested, patting his brother on the shoulder.

Kei had introduced them briefly. Kayleigh was the girl with short hair just to her shoulders, and Gracie was the girl who had a long thick ponytail that stretched down to her waist. Kayleigh and Kei were close, but only for the simple reasons that they both had names that started with a K. She held his hand as they wandered through the forest. They passed the spot where Kuroo and Tsukki had sat and talked on the first day. "You know, my name has a K too."

"But that's your last name. Doesn't count," Kayleigh said quickly. So she had her brother's sharp tongue as well.

"Yeah, we could say we're all close because we have the last name Tsukishima."

"Well you all _are_ close because you have the surname Tsukishima. You're family. And besides, you two are Kayleigh Tsukishima and Kei Tsukishima. My name is Tetsurou Kuroo. It's still T and K, but the other way around."

"Hm. I guess."

Gracie ran ahead, turning around, "So....what does it mean that he's your boyfriend?" she asked. Tsukki and Tetsurou looked at one another. And had an entire conversation with their eyes and gestures. It only lasted for a moment, but an entire war of words had gone on.

_You do it - they don't know you they'll take it better._

_Their your sisters._

Tsukishima sighed. "You know how dad and....your mum are together. And they love each other a lot."

"Yeah."

"Well, it's like that. But I love Tetsurou a lot. And he's my boyfriend."

"So...you two are going out? Are two boys allowed to go out?"

"Yes...there's a word for it. I'm gay, and Tetsurou is too. Gay means that I like boys, instead of girls."

"Can girls be gay too?" Kayleigh asked.

"Yeah."

"Then....I would prefer that. Boys are gross."

Kei snorted, "Am I gross?"

"No, you're okay. Everyone else is."

"Is the word gay in English too?"

"Hmm... I'm sure there is, I just don't know it. We'll have to put it on the list."

Kuroo frowned, "The list?"

"There's a...language barrier. Because my first language is Japanese, and their first language is English. They speak Japanese at home, and I'm learning English but sometimes we don't know words and it's hard to talk, so we put them on the list and then at the end of the day we look them up."

Kuroo nodded, "Absolutely fair enough."

"Can we go back now? It's getting cold?" Kayleigh asked.

"Sure."

"Can we stay the night? We never get any time together?"

"Ask your father."

They wandered back to the house, Kei holding his hand, sticking to his side, rubbing his head against his shoulder.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Im sorry :')

They ended up going for dinner at the hotel Kei's father was staying at, and after a lot of pleading and some near temper tantrums, the twins managed to convince their parents to let them stay the night. Kuroo  managed to get through the meal with the awkward discussion and conversation with Mr Tsukishima. Kei's mother was so much easier to talk to, she was calm, and down to earth, but his father was complicated. He wouldn't say it out loud - Kei would kill him - but he was starting to see where he got his attitude from. They were nothing alike...but he was starting to see the familiar traits in the both of them. Despite that, he definitely felt disapproval radiating off Mr Tsukishima. And he wasn't sure if it was because he was a man, whether it was because Kei hadn't told him anything about a boyfriend, or whether it was just that he didn't like the way he looked. He knew he looked threatening...a little. There was nothing he could do about that. But Gracie an Kayleigh weren't scared of him...and he really did value their opinions more than their fathers.

They were dropped off at Kei's home, with a promise that his father would return shortly with clothes for the night and the next day. In that waiting time, the siblings set to work transforming the lounge into a comfy space for the night. They made a little den in the corner, behind the sofa, where the girls decided they would be sleeping. The two brothers went to get dressed into their pyjamas, leaving the twins aloe with Kuroo to try and pick a film they wanted to watch before bed. The Tsukishimas had a surprising amount of Disney films in their film selection - more than expected, since the twins only visited a couple times a year. They were asking opinions from Kuroo on which film he wanted to watch, and in the end the two girls settled on Frozen.

Akiteru and Kei tried to hide their horror at the film selection. Clearly they had seen this film a lot more than they wanted to. When their dad arrived, they helped the girls into their pyjamas while Kuroo went to go get changed on his own, and when he came back the siblings were all cuddled up together. Gracie was sat between her brothers, and Kayleigh was sat on Kei's lap, a blanket thrown over both of them. "Where do I sit, then?" he asked, looking over the cosy scene. Kei patted the seat next to him, shifting closer to him as he sat down.

"Now, English or Japanese, which is better for you two?"

"English!" the two girls yelled. "Elsa's voice is prettier."

Kuroo was vaguely concerned that he wasn't going to have a clue what was going on. He was good at conversational English...but he didn't think that covered the intense self-doubt and the discussions of Frozen. The Tsukishimas made sure to select Japanese subtitles, so clearly the two brothers weren't brilliant at English too.

And the two girls sang along to their hearts content, just like any other girls their age. But what surprised Tetsurou...was the fact that _both_ Tsukishima brothers seemed to know every single word - English or Japanese - to the songs. He heard Kei humming along to all the songs. His sisters pleaded with him to sing louder, and eventually he gave in, bellowing along to Love is an Open Door. And his voice was surprisingly sweet and gentle. He'd never struck Kuroo as particularly musical, but clearly he was wrong. Very wrong. This boy had the voice of an angel. He felt like he was falling in love with him all over again. "I didn't know you can sing?" Kuroo whispered, and Kei snorted.

Kayleigh turned around, "Are you kidding?! Kei does singing grading! He knows like _all_ the princess songs!"

"Right...that...did not need to be said."

Tetsurou smiled, "All of the princesses songs? In two languages?"

"I'm good at English."

"So am I...and I can't sing...Let it go in English."

"His pronunciation isn't perfect," Gracie interrupted.

"Neither is yours, shut up," Kei defended. Akiteru laughed,

"He's getting good at it though, isn't it?"

"Yeah, I mean, yours is worse, Aki."

Instead of defending his brother, Tsukki just laughed.

"Since when did you do grading in music?"

"Since always."

"Why didn't you _tell me_?"

"When did you even need to know? Why do I need to sing in volleyball practice? Do you think I'm just gunna burst out with _Wicked_ songs in the middle of practice?"

"Well, maybe. I could live with that."

Kei rolled his eyes, "Never gunna happen."

"I wanna hear your voice, though. At some point. Please," Kuroo gripped his arm, staring into his face. Kei smirked, brushing a hand through his sister's hair. "Maybe."

"Please can it be Defying Gravity?"

"I said maybe."

"Yes..."

 

The film finished, and soon the two girls were asleep. Akiteru and Kei carefully laid their sisters down to sleep, before settling down themselves. Kuroo lay down next to Tsukki, watching him as he pulled out is phone. "This is exactly like sleeping next to Kenma,"

Kei choked, rolling over. "That is not something sexy to tell your boyfriend," he laughed. "'Oh hey, you look like my lanky and bitchy twig of a best friend.'"

"Well, I mean, you're both...mean-ish. You're both blonde, you both have like zero muscle."

"Please stop, I'm gunna get scared that you're gunna leave me for Kenma," Tsukki said, his phone now dropped to his side. It was dark in the room, but Kuroo could just about make out the smirk on his face. Tetsurou leaned over him, supporting himself on his forearm, his chest pressed against Kei's. He kissed him slowly, the younger boy pushing against his chest after a moment. "No, you can't kiss me, right now," he bit his lip. Kuroo shrugged,

"Why not?"

"Because there are two six year olds in the room, and one traumatised twenty-two year old," Akiteru interjected.

"What he said," Kei agreed, "but mostly about the six year olds."

"Jeez, if this is what you guys are like on your own, I'm forcing Kuroo back into my room."

"No, no, it's fine, we'll be good, I swear."

 

The next morning, their mother woke them up early. "Kei, you have volleyball practice this morning, remember?"

"Ah shi-"

"There are still kids here, sweetie."

"Yes. Yes. There are. And it's okay because I'm going to volleyball now."

"Your dad called, he can't pick them up until the afternoon, do you mind taking your sisters to volleyball? I need to go to work this morning."

Kei sat up in bed so fast, Kuroo woke up from the shock. "Mum! First I have to drag Kuroo along, now I have to bring my sisters? Volleyball is not a fuc-"

"There are _children_ , Kei,"

"-king daycare! Why can't they stay with Akiteru?"

"C'mon Kei, it's only for today. You know Akiteru won't survive."

" _Mum_ -"

"Don't _mum_ me. Take care of your damn sisters, Kei."

Kuroo nearly choked. Kei sighed, "Mum there are children in the room."

"Don't test my patience, get up."

Kuroo was wrong. Kei got his sass from his mother's side.

 

And then there they were, sat in the car with their bags, Kei instructing his sisters not to encourage Hinata to do anything stupid, and not to be unnecessarily loud. Kuroo had made the wrong move of offering to babysit the girls while Tsukishima was practicing, and it looked like he was going to be held to it.

He was not good with kids.

"We're here, Akiteru will pick you up after, play nice with the other kids."

"You know I always do."

"Kuroo, make sure he plays nice with the other kids,"

"You got it."

Kuroo was getting out of the car when he heard Miss Tsukishima sigh, "You're just too good for my boy." And he knew he wasn't supposed to hear it, so he knew that was what she honestly thought. And he felt like he was going to cry. He hadn't expected to feel so loved.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This thing is gunna be finished in a couple of chapters I hope

Yamaguchi was the first to step outside, and see the family standing there. Kei looking at him pleadingly. "Gracie! Kayleigh! It's been a while," he stepped out, smiling at the children.

"No, please, do not encourage them," Kei whined. Kuroo frowned, as Gracie pulled at his hand, begging to be picked up. How does he deal with children?

It wasn't long before Hinata and Ennoshita and others looked out through the door, seeing the children standing there. "No way...Tsukishima has multiplied!"

"No, you moron, they're my sisters."

"Oh..." Hinata almost sounded disappointed at that.

"Can you get Ukai? I need to...discuss something with him?" Ennoshita smiled, going back inside.

The coach soon emerged from the gym, looking suitably unimpressed. "First you miss practice? And now you bring two children...and the captain of a rival team."

"Technically...I don't count as a rival captain anymore. And neither does Daichi or anything? Is he still there?" Kuroo asked, Kei laid his hand on his chest, making him step back. "Look, okay, sorry about the kids, my parents are busy so I had to take them. They can stay outside with the stray cat, they won't bother us, I swear to god."

"Stray cat..." Kuroo frowned, glaring at his partner.

Ukai raised an eyebrow, staring at the boy. "Can I ask why the girls and the....stray cat are here to begin with?"

"My dad brought my sisters over for a visit, and I happened to also really badly time a trip for my boyfriend to visi-" Kei shut his mouth quickly, realising he'd just told the coach Kuroo was his boyfriend. His eyes were wide, and he was clearly panicking about how Ukai was going to take it.

The team knew - but that seemed almost accidental. They'd worked it out after Tsukishima spent an unusual amount of time out with Kuroo during training camp. And Sugawara and Daichi had walked in on them kissing. That was a memory Kei really wanted to forget.

Ukai looked a little bit surprised. Clearly it was unexpected. Kuroo just watched the two of them maintain uncomfortable eye contact, until Ukai sighed, "The guests stay on the side lines, or they stay outside," he said, going back into the gym. Tsukishima let out a breath. "Were you that scared what he thought?"

"Of course I was! I don't give a shit if my dad's homophobic, but if my coach is...that could mess things up." The two girls gasped. "Kei said a bad word! Kei said a bad word!" they gasped.

Tsukishima looked like he was really ready to say worse. "You heard what he said. You stay on the side lines and you be quiet, or you stay out here and play with Kuro. Your choice."

The girls considered it. "Can we watch you play?"

"If you don't tell dad I said a bad word."

The two girls smiled, following their brother in.

 

The team seemed to have a lot of interest towards the two girls. They knew about Akiteru, but he'd never mentioned little sisters before, and they seemed too sweet to genuinely be related to Kei. Kuroo also decided to take a back seat, sitting out and watching their practice. Tanaka and Noya looked at the girls as they sat down next to Yachi. "Hey Tsukishima!" Noya called. Kuroo saw his boyfriend's shoulders literally slump in response.

"What?" he snapped.

"Why don't you look much like your sisters? I mean...you and your big brother look about the same but..."

"My sisters are mixed race. I'm not."

"How can they be mixed race if you're not?"

"They have a different mother. A mother who is not Japanese. So they're mixed race. And I am not." Kei answered, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. And with that the conversation about his sister's dropped. He seemed intent to ignore them. Gracie sat next to Tetsurou, with Kayleigh on the other side, sandwiching him in. "Do you know how to do hair?" Gracie asked him. He smirked,

"Do I _look_ like I know how to do hair?" he asked. She frowned,

"My hair's getting in my face. Can you tie it up?"

He shrugged, "I can braid it...if that's alright?" She shrugged, turning her back so he could run his hands through his hair. He kept tugging it, and when he eventually tied it up she stared at it, frowning a little bit before sighing, and tossing it back over her shoulder. "What are they doing?" she asked eventually, watching the team play. Kuroo watched her. "...Playing....volleyball?" he answered, not sure what exactly she was asking. God was he bad with children. He didn't even know what to do. "How does volleyball work?" Gracie asked, and Kayleigh turned her face up, waiting for him to explain. "Both of your brothers play volleyball and you don't know what it is?"

"Well we know what it _is_...but all I see is Kei jumping up and down and I don't really get why."

Kuroo sighed, before launching in to as basic an explanation he could muster. He used the voice he used when he was explaining something to Lev, and he kind of hoped it would work. The two girls nodded, before turning back and watching the game. "Do you play volleyball too, Tetsurou?" Kayleigh asked. Kuroo snorted,

"Yeah. I'm the captain of my own team. I met your brother through volleyball."

"Oh? Where's your team?"

"I live in Tokyo,"

The two girls frowned, "Tokyo is...."

"The capital city. In the East."

"Right," they nodded meekly. "Why did you and Kei start going out? What did you like about him?"

He bit his lip, staring at Kei blankly, trying to think of an answer. It was such a loaded question. What did he like about Kei? He liked everything, more or less. He did things that irritated him, but he loved the fact that he was able to rile him up like that. He shrugged, "He was really funny. And I guess I liked that a lot at first," he answered meekly.

"Are you two gunna get married?"

"No," Kuroo answered the question so quickly, he didn't really even think about it.

"What? Why not?" the girls asked.

"Boys can't marry boys in Japan," he muttered, and that seemed to confuse the girls even more. God, he was not ready to try and discuss the logistics of gay rights or homophobia with six year olds. They were too young to be jaded with the wrongs of the world. "Have you ever played volleyball before?" he asked the girls, trying to distract them from the matter. They both shook their heads, and Kuroo offered to help teach them the basics outside. Tsukishima seemed really relieved to see them head outside.

By the end of the session, it seemed like Tetsurou had managed to accidentally convert two more of the Tsukishimas into volleyball nuts. He had to admit, they seemed very natural at the sport, and it seemed like they realised it, too. By the time Kei left practice, he was surrounded once again by small people shrieking about volleyball. Kuroo could practically see his eye flicker.

 

His father was waiting back at the house, awkwardly hanging around, clearly not sure whether to make conversation with his ex-wife or not. Judging by the look on her face, it was probably for the best that he'd stayed silent. "Hi girls," he said, smiling at his younger children, pointedly ignoring Tsukishima and Kuroo as they came in behind them. "Did you enjoy your morning with Kei?" Kuroo had to stop himself smiling at the literal drop in his face when the girls started talking about volleyball. Clearly he thought he'd escaped the volleyball enthusiasm when he'd left his first two children. Kei smiled, patting his sisters on the head, "Looks like you've raised four volleyball players," he said, and his step-mother laughed.

"Just as long as they don't grow up to be really tall, because I don't think boys would like that," she said softly. It was clearly a dig at the two brothers, and Kuroo felt himself squeeze Kei's hand almost involuntarily. Kei smiled at his step-mother, "You should have thought about that before you married an abnormally tall man, really. And anyway, who says your daughters will both have boys in their life?" he laughed, going into the kitchen, pulling Kuroo with him. "Holy shit, your family is so tense I don't think I can keep up with all the passive aggressiveness here," he breathed, "I'm _too nice_ for all this subtle bitchiness. My family is wholesome and loving. I'm not used to this." Kei was busy searching through the fridge whilst Kuroo was ranting, and he finally set the orange juice on the counter before he turned back to Kuroo. "Why do you think I am the way I am?" he asked.

"I always asked myself that, but now I know it comes from your deep seated daddy issues and constant insults from your father and his wife. I suddenly know so much more about you now."

Kei nodded, "You're welcome for that. Now, if, like you said, you're _too nice_ for the warzone that is my family, why the _fuck_ are you dating me in the first place?" he whispered, trying to keep his voice down so his sisters wouldn't hear him swearing from the other room. Tetsurou frowned, "Because you're bitchy but you're not...mean like your parents are. Like...you say things and it's funny because I know you don't mean it. But your dad and his wife...they say things meant to cut you down and hurt you and you're _not_ like that. You say things, and yeah, I admit, sometimes you can go a little too far, but you never mean it. And that's why I can deal with you, and that's why I love you."

Kei clutched his hand to his chest, mocking a look of absolute adoration. "That would have been romantic if you hadn't called me a bitch in the first sentence."

"Shut up, you know it's true," Kuroo smiled, leaning closer to the counter, trapping Kei between his arms. He smiled, putting his arms around Tetsurou's shoulders, holding him close. They pressed their foreheads together, and Kuroo sighed contently. "You know I really do love you, though, right?" he asked softly. Tsukishima nodded, "Of course I do. You say it enough," he kissed Kuroo gently. "I love you too."

Kuroo grinned, "You finally say it."

"I've said it before."

"I know, but you hardly ever say it."

"Do you want me to say it more?"

"No, because I know you'll start mocking me. Hearing it every so often is enough." Kei brushed his hands through Kuroo's hair, holding him close, kissing him again, deeper. Tetsurou's hands left the counter, hovering above the small of Kei's back for a moment before he finally grabbed him, like he was scared to touch him. Tsukishima really loved the way Kuroo held him, the way he held him so close like he was the most important thing to him. Kuroo was always so gentle, so eager to make sure Kei was alright. He was so amazing.

They heard a cough at the door, and turned to see Kei's mother standing there. "I'm starting to doubt whether I should have let you stay in the same room," she said. Kei sighed,

"No, it's fine. We're just having difficulty dealing with dad's bitchiness."

She rolled her eyes, "Aren't we all?" she murmured, "Speaking of, he's insisting on going out for a meal this evening, so...keep things civil. We only have to deal with him for a few more hours."

Kei laughed somewhat manically at that, holding tight to Kuroo. "Oh thank God," he muttered. "Now we can get back to doing things together before my family interrupted," he whispered, holding close to Kuroo again.


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry this is so late :') I had a lot to do...

“Why do we have to go to a second dinner with dad again?” Kei complained, leaning in his doorway.

“Because it’s one of the last times they’ll be here before they travel down to Tokyo for their actual holiday,” his mother replied. Clearly she wasn’t happy about it either. Kuroo was lying in bed, trying to hide the fact he didn’t have a shirt on, after a night of kissing and touching with Kei. “Oh. Right. Silly me for thinking my father came back to Japan to see his kids,” Tsukki murmured, obviously wounded. His mum looked at him.

“You two have nice clothing, don’t you?” she asked, mostly directed to Kuroo, who was up to his chin in Tsukki’s bedsheets, trying to cover himself. “Uh…yes…I have smart stuff with me, I guess?” He had brought it with him and the off chance he might have been able to take Kei out on a romantic date. He’d been blocked however, by his father, and he couldn’t help feel bitter about that. “Right. That’s good,” his mother sighed, “And get up, you two, it’s like mid-afternoon, we’ve got to get going in the next couple of hours.” She departed, and Kei shut his door, Kuroo throwing back the blanket, feeling sweaty after being trapped under there for so long. Kei was in sleep shorts, and a loose t-shirt – not a lot, but just enough to get away with. His shoulders slumped, obviously defeated, and Kuroo sat up, ready to throw his arms around Tsukishima. The sixteen-year-old rubbed his eyes underneath his glasses sleepily. He sat near Kuroo, and when the older boy wrapped his arms around his shoulders, Tsukki fell in with little resistance. “You okay?” Tetsurou asked. Kei was stiff.

“I want my dad to pick whether he wants to stay in my life or fuck off. I hate him just showing up and then disappearing whenever he feels like it. I just want to get on with things, and it’s so difficult when he just keeps coming back. He has a new wife. And he has the twins. I know he won’t come back to us, and I don’t even think I want him back. But I just… every time he comes back I have hope. And every time he comes back he crushes that hope. I just wanted…a week or two with you. That was all. A week or two where I could actually _be_ with you before you leave for university. Because I’m not going to be able to see you at training camps anymore. But my fucking dad is ruining that too!” Kei huffed. Kuroo stroked a hand through his hair absentmindedly.

“I wanted to be with you too.”

Kei sighed again, and Kuroo kissed his forehead. He tried to think of positives, but he couldn’t think of any. It sucked. He and Tsukishima were going to be away from each other for a long time. They were used to it – they lived cities away from each other anyway, but they saw each other at training camps. That wouldn’t be possible now. All of Tsukishima’s holidays were eaten up with training camps that he had to go on, and Kuroo wasn’t welcome on anymore. It was going to be harder to see each other. Kuroo held him tighter. “Well… I mean it’s only one dinner…we can do that and then I have a few days left we can make the most of,” he said gently. Kei pouted, leaning his head on Kuro’s chest heavily. Kuroo rubbed his back, not sure what else to do. Within a moment or two, Kei had pulled himself together again. It was only a moment of weakness, Testurou knew that was all he was going to be allowed. Tsukki didn’t like being weak, he didn’t like being seen as weak. Kuroo hoped that, maybe one day, he’ll be trusted enough to see that. They were young. But he loved Kei. He knew that much. He had dates before, small relationships, but he really, deeply loved Kei. He just prayed that was going to last.

“Right. We should get ready for a night of passive aggressive tension,” the blond said, shifting out of bed. “You should probably shower first. Or put a shirt on,” he said, going through his wardrobe, trying to find clothes.

 

They stood outside the restaurant. The night was slightly cold. Kuroo shoved his hands in his trouser pockets, rocking backwards on his heels. “I’m sorry for this,” Kei whispered again, texting Yamaguchi. He was sure the two boys were bitching to one another. There was some discussions that could only be had between best friends, and bitching about one’s distant father was probably one of those. The twins came running up to their brothers, greeting them with hugs. Kuroo was also greeted with a warm smile from them. The reception from the adults was chilly. Tetsurou was greeted with a cold, vicious smile. Mr. Tsukishima didn’t like him, he was sure of that fact. “Well, should we go in?” Kei’s mother asked, forcing a smile.

“Yes, please,” her ex-husband muttered. They began to move, but he caught Kei’s arm. “A moment, please Kei? I wanna talk to you a second.” Kei’s jaw clenched for a moment, and only a moment. Kuroo was sure he was the only one who saw it flash across his face – this flash of worry. But he nodded, staying behind as everyone filed into the restaurant. Kuroo sat with a spare seat next to him, as he sat next to Mrs Tsukishima on the other side. There wasn’t much conversation. The two mothers were pointedly avoiding one another’s eyes. It must have been awkward. Both women had two children with the same man, and were forced to have contact once a year, at least. It was clear the two families just wanted to split off, and ignore their ties completely. But Hotaru wouldn’t let that happen. The girls smiled at one another, looking at each other, talking amongst themselves in English. It was quiet, the tension palpable. But then the front door opened, and Tetsurou twisted in his seat to see father and son coming through the doors. He smiled, opening his mouth to speak to Tsukki when he blew right passed the table, heading to the bathroom. Mr Tsukishima was frowning as he sat down. “Fucking idiot…” he murmured, leaning heavily on the table. Kuroo stood up from the table quickly, marching into the bathroom after his boyfriend.

Kei was leaning on one of the basins, biting at his nails. His face was blotchy and pale, his lower lip trembling a little bit. “What’s wrong?” Kuroo asked, leaning close.

“Dad,” was all Tsukki revealed. Kuroo’s shoulders dropped.

“What’d he say?” he asked quietly.

“That he wished I wasn’t so stupid…that I’d stop this stupid phase of liking boys,” he paused for a moment, to stop the tremor of his lower lip. “Basically, he just said he didn’t like me,” he looked down, smirking to himself sadly. Kuroo wrapped an arm around him, pulling him close for a moment or two. His mind was still comprehending all of this. He sucked in a breath. “How about we just go home, yeah? Go get takeout or something and just sit at home.” Kei nodded feebly against his shoulder, and Kuroo turned around, kissing him on the head. “I love you. Go wait outside a sec, I’ll tell your family what’s happening.”

Kuroo marched up to the table, he could see Tsukishima’s figure standing outside. “What’s going on?” Mrs Tsukishima asked, biting her lip. “I’m taking Kei home, we’ll be skipping this meal, if that’s alright.” Hotaru huffed, running a hand through his hair. “Excuse me,” Kuroo snapped. “I’m taking Kei home because of you. You insult your own son and then get angry that he’s upset? Grow up,” he murmured, wandering out. He took Kei by the hand, walking the long way home.

 

Once they were home, Tetsurou ordered a pizza as Kei changed into comfortable clothing. After they were both out of their uncomfortable clothing, they settled together on the sofa, waiting for the food to arrive. It wasn’t long before they began kissing, and with no one in the house, there wasn’t really anything stopping the two of them. “Nobody’s going to be home for hours,” Tsukishima whispered in Kuroo’s ear, his hands on his shoulders. “Are you suggesting what I think you are?” he asked. Kei was sat on his lap, looking down at Kuroo’s face. Tetsurou’s hands were on Kei’s hips, although he was tempted to sink them a little bit lower. Kei smirked, stroking one hand across Tetsurou’s cheek, kissing him again. “Not tonight,” Kuroo said softly. “I want it to be special, not rushed.” They hadn’t had this conversation before. He hadn’t been able to bring himself to ask. But Kei had brought it up. He said he was ready. The other boy nodded – it sounded fair, moving closer to Kuroo again. The doorbell rang, and both boys paused for a moment. Kuroo sighed grumpily, “I better get that,” he said, squeezing Kei’s hip, before moving him off his lap, going up to the door. Kei curled up on the sofa, looking over the back of it as Kuroo answered the door, he was smiling adoringly at him. He’d never been happier.


End file.
